The Simple Things
by badly-knitted
Summary: After a hot day at work, Dee and Ryo are back at Ryo's apartment, relaxing with a drink. A bit of domestic fluff written for fic promptly. Set after Vol. 7.


**Title:** The Simple Things

 **Author:** badly-knitted

 **Characters:** Dee, Ryo.

 **Rating:** PG

 **Setting:** After Vol. 7.

 **Summary:** After a hot day at work, Dee and Ryo are back at Ryo's apartment, relaxing with a drink.

 **Word Count:** 789

 **Written For:** My own prompt 'FAKE, Dee/Ryo, sitting on the floor drinking coffee,' at fic_promptly.

 **Disclaimer:** I don't own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.

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There's a perfectly good sofa in Ryo's living room, they're leaning against it, but for some reason they've chosen to sit on the bare floorboards instead of the comfortably upholstered seat. Maybe it's because it's an unseasonably hot day and the floor is cooler, but if that's the case, why are they drinking hot coffee? Habit, Ryo decides. We always have a cup of coffee when we're brainstorming a case. Kicks the thought processes into high gear.

Well, usually it does, but not today. Sprawled on the floor in the slight breeze from the air conditioning, Ryo's thoughts are slow and muzzy, and the hot coffee is only making him feel lethargic. Coffee is supposed to wake you up, not make you fall asleep, but he could quite happily doze off. Dee doesn't seem to be any better; he has his mug in one hand and his head tipped back against the sofa cushions, staring at the ceiling. Ryo wonders what he's looking at so decides to copy his partner.

"Huh. Looks like the ceiling needs repainting."

"What?" Dee turns his head slightly.

"The ceiling. I should redecorate."

Dee turns his head back and stares upwards again. "Nah. Looks fine to me."

"So what were you looking at?"

"Nothin', just letting my mind wander."

"Thinking about the case?"

Dee gives a soft snort. "Nope, mostly about how hot it is, and how good it feels to sit down after all the walkin' we've done today."

"Mmm." Ryo wiggles his toes. "It does feel good."

"I mean, it's not that I mind goin' door to door tryin' to find someone who might have seen or heard something, but when we draw a blank everywhere we go… It's frustrating. All that time and effort, and nothin' to show for it." Dee takes a gulp of his coffee and swears as it burns his mouth. "Shit! I thought it would be cool by now!"

Ryo laughs and takes a more cautious sip from his own mug.

"Why are we even drinkin' coffee in this heat?" Dee stares suspiciously into his mug as if the answer might be in there.

"Habit. Brainstorming sessions require coffee, it's a known fact." Ryo's tone is amused and when Dee looks over at him, he sees his partner is grinning, dark eyes sparkling. It's a very appealing sight, and he'd like to continue taking in the view, but…

"Hell with that." Dee sets his mug, still more than half full, on the coffee table that their legs are stretched out underneath and levers himself to his feet. "We're not brainstorming anything, my brain got so cooked out there today all my thoughts have melted; more heat's only gonna make it worse, I need a cold beer. How about you?"

Ryo looks at the mug in his hand, the level of liquid inside hasn't even gone down an inch. He'd made the coffee as soon as they got in, but he doesn't really want it. "Cold beer sounds great; guess I might as well empty this since I'm not going to drink it." He starts to get up, but Dee stops him.

"You stay put, I've got this." He reaches out for Ryo's mug then picks up his own before heading into the kitchen. Pouring the coffee down the sink and rinsing away the dregs, he fills the mugs with water, setting them aside to soak, and grabs two bottles of beer from the fridge, digging the bottle opener from the drawer to remove the caps. At home, he would have used the edge of his kitchen counter, but Ryo would get mad at him if he did that here and marked the pristine surfaces. As an afterthought, Dee grabs a bag of chips from the cupboard. After being out in the heat all day, they could probably use the salt.

Ryo's eyes are closed when Dee gets back, so Dee bops him over the head with the chips before dropping the bag in his partner's lap. "Open that, will ya?" He sets the beers on the coffee table and slides back down to sit beside Ryo, pushing one of the bottles towards him and grabbing a handful of chips from the now open bag. Sinking into a companionable silence, they sip their beers and munch chips.

Brainstorming can wait until later, when evening brings cooler temperatures; right now they're just content to relax in each other's company, cooling off after a hard day. Dee figures they've earned it, and since Ryo's not protesting, it looks like he agrees.

Tipping his head back against the sofa cushions again and staring sightlessly towards the ceiling, Dee smiles dreamily. Sometimes the simple things in life are by far the best.

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The End


End file.
